The Australians washing their way to better mental health

by
Sue White
| Thomson Reuters Foundation

Wednesday, 21 February 2018 11:14 GMT

Damian Pealing, who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder and anxiety, working at the Vanguard Laundry in Toowoomba, Australia, which employs people with mental health conditions. Credit: Vanguard Laundry

Work gives people independence and financial security, provides a distraction from worries and interacting with colleagues boosts mental wellbeing and confidence

By Sue White

SYDNEY, Feb 21 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - When Luke Terry decided to set up a business, hiring unemployed people with mental illnesses to do laundry for hotels and hospitals in eastern Australia, his friends laughed.

"I'd never really done any washing, even at home," said Terry, who lives in Toowoomba, 125 km (78 miles) west of Queensland's state capital, Brisbane.

"People found it quite amusing."

No one is laughing now. Just one year after Australia's prime minister officially opened Vanguard Laundry Services, the social enterprise employs more than 30 people and has more than 80 commercial customers.

Terry is one of an estimated 20,000 businesses in Australia selling goods or services that also help to address a social problem, according to Social Traders, which supports the sector.

Across the globe, a growing number of entrepreneurs are setting up companies to tackle social challenges, ranging from reducing isolation among the elderly to improving communities and breaking the cycle of reoffending.

One in five Australians with a mental health condition are jobless - a rate four times higher than for the rest of the population, according to Queensland's Mental Health Commission.

"People with mental illness are dying in their 50s, versus 80s for the rest of the population," said Terry.

"What if we can just give people a job and that will make a difference?"

They visit hospital less often, are less anxious about paying their rent and many have stopped smoking, a survey by Vanguard found.

Work gives people independence and financial security, provides a distraction from worries and interacting with colleagues boosts mental wellbeing and confidence, a Queensland government report on social enterprises found.

It is considering offering grants to help such businesses get started or expand, while also seeking to buy more goods and services from them.

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